Roubal F R, Quartararo N
Department of Parasitology, University of Queensland, Australia.
Int J Parasitol. 1992 Jul;22(4):459-64. doi: 10.1016/0020-7519(92)90146-c.
The monogeneans Anoplodiscus australis and A. cirrusspiralis infect the fins of their respective hosts, the yellowfin bream, Acanthopagrus australis, and the snapper, Pagrus auratus. In these habitats the adult parasite contains melanin-like pigment deposits within the body. Very young parasites lack the pigment but deposits of pigment appear and coalesce into dense deposits within the parasite as it grows. The evidence suggests that the pigment is synthesized within the body of the parasite rather than acquired through feeding on the host epidermis. However, adults of Anoplodiscus cirrusspiralis from the nares of snapper lack this pigment, which suggests that environmental cues may promote the production of pigment as a possible aid to camouflage.
单殖吸虫澳洲异沟盘虫（Anoplodiscus australis）和旋触须异沟盘虫（A. cirrusspiralis）分别寄生于各自的宿主——黄鳍鲷（Acanthopagrus australis）和笛鲷（Pagrus auratus）的鱼鳍上。在这些寄生环境中，成年寄生虫体内含有类似黑色素的色素沉积物。非常年幼的寄生虫没有这种色素，但随着寄生虫的生长，色素沉积物会出现并融合成密集的沉积物。有证据表明，这种色素是在寄生虫体内合成的，而不是通过摄取宿主表皮获得的。然而，来自笛鲷鼻孔的旋触须异沟盘虫成虫缺乏这种色素，这表明环境线索可能会促进色素的产生，作为一种可能有助于伪装的手段。
